Water-stage indicator.



Patented J une 12, 1917.

nventor Attorneys I I I M W Q\\\ M H \\N ANA UN N T WA I .Im w NN IRIHmN mw ww Iam N D. W. PROEBSTEL.

WATER STAGE INDICATOR.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 3|. I9I4. 1,229,785.

Witnesses D. W. PROEBSTEL.

WATER STAGE INDICATOR. APPLICATION FILED MAR. SI. I9I4.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

Witnesses Inventor by A f rf,

Attorneys 1,229,785. Patented June 12, 1917.

' @fw/MMM D. W. PROEBSTEL.

WATER STAGE INDICATOR.

APPLICATIONV FILED MAR. 3l. 19M.

1,229,785 Patented June 12, 1917.

. IIIA /4 ventor Attorneys DELBERT W.PROEBSTEL, 0F TREADWELL, TERRITORY 0F ALASKA.

WATER-STAGE INDIGAToii.

- y Specification of Letters Patent. l Patented J une 12, 1917,

Application led March 31, 1914. Serial No. 828,558.

Toall whom z't may concern:

Be it known that 1, DELB'ERT W. PRoEB- STEL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Treadwell, S. E., Territory of Alaska, have invented a new and useful Water-Stage Indicator, of which the following is a speciication. l

This invention relates to apparatus for indicating water stages, one of its objects being to transmit the readings of water levels in dams, rivers, tide waters, etc., to remote places for the convenience of persons desiring such information.

Another object is to provide a novel form of controller whereby the actuation of the indicator will be effected accurately.

A further object'isto provide a novel form of indicator connected electrically to the controller for accurately disclosing the water level at the controller.

With the foregoing and other objects in view which will appear as the description proceeds, the invention resides inthe combination and arrangement of parts and in the details of construction hereinafter described and claimed, it being understood that changes in the precise embodiment of the invention herein disclosed, can be made within the scope of what is claimed, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

1n the accompanying drawingsone of the preferred forms of the invention has been shown. l

In said drawings Figure 1 is a view showing in diagram the back of the indicator, the controller and connections.

Fig. 2 is a view showing, diagrammatically, the indicator and its connections with the controller and showing the successive changes inthe polarity of the magnets of the indicator whereby intermittent rotation of the armatures of the indicator in either elevation.

- Referring to the figures by characters of reference 10 designates a suitable holding frame in which is journaled a shaft 11. Mounted for rotation on this shaft is a drum 12 on which oppositely extending wires, cords, or the like 13 are adapted to be wound, one of these wires being connected to a float 14 while the other wire is connected to a weight 15 constituting a counterbalance. The wires or other flexible connections indicated at 13 may be mounted on suitable guide sheaves, such as shown at 16 and it is to be understood that float 14 is to rest upon the surface of the body of water, the stages of which are to be indicated. The two connections 13 are wound in opposite directions `so that while one of them is being wound on the drum 12, the other is being unwound. `l

, A commutator 17 rotates with the drum 12 and has combined therewith contacts 18 and 19 electrically connected, as showninFig. 2,

to the source of the direct current utilized.y

Additional contacts 2O 21 and 22 are combined with the commutator and are connected by the respective conductors 23, 24 and 25 to the indicator 26 which may be located at any desired distance from the controller. The contacts or brushes 20 and 22 are in the form of upstanding leaf springs carried byV the base of the frame 10, while the contacts or brushes 18, 19 and 21 are carried by the arch of the frame 10 and are disposed in a longitudinal line of the frame. The indicator includes a casing 27 having eccentrically mounted therein a motor which might be termed a D. synchronous motor. This motor, which has been Aindicated generally at 28, is eccentrically mounted in the casing and includes fixed stationary poles or magnets designated generally at 29, 30,31, 32. 33, and 34 respectively. Four movable poles or armatures 35, 36, 37 and 38 are also utilized. These armatures are secured to a shaft 39 to which a small gear 40 is'secured and said small gear transmits motion through a train of gears 41 to an arbor 42,V A dial plate 43 rotates with the arbor 42 relative to a fixed hand or pointer 44. A series of graduations are arranged on said dial plate, indicatingv feet and fractions thereof or any other units of measure desired.

The wiring of the fixed poles or magnets has been indicated clearly in diagram in Fig. 2 and rthe direction of the circuit through the commu'tator and the magnets during the successive movements ofthe commutator can be determined readlly from f Said figura With the parts positioned' as indicated in Fig.l 2, the contact 18which is the positive contact-is electrically connected throughone of the segments of the commutator, with the contact 20 While lthe contact 19 which is the negative contact, is electrically connected, through another segment ofthe commutator, with thecontacts 22 and 21. These positions of the contacts relative fto each other only occur when the oommutator is brought to one of six positions which .the commutator assumes during its rotation. When the commutator is moved to its next position,

the contact 21 is brought into electrical communication with thecont'acts 18 and 20 while when the commutator is brought to its the'. third pair `is of the opposite polarity.

, Consequently one change of the controller inkeither vdirection will cause the polarity of one' of the pairs lof magnets to change and this will result in the rotation of the movable poles or armatures and their shaft `39 in one direction or the other,` depending upon the direction in which the controller is moved. This movement'is always through v a fixed angle, in the present instance, onetwelfth of a complete revolution. The parts are so proportioned that .this onevtwelfth rotation willresult in the movement of the dial 43 one graduation relative to the fixed indicator 44.

In the Aform illustrated, a one-tenth foot variation in the waterlevelwill result in revolving the controller drum one-sixth of a revolution thus eifecting oneY change of connections between'the contacts 18, 19, 20, 21

and 22 and causing dial 43 to move one point or graduation.

As shown particularly in Fig. 1, a lamp 45 in the controller circuit. and a lamp '.46

in the circuit of the movable magnets 35,36, 37, and l38 which are separately excited, is used for external resistance.

f It is to be understood that any suitable recorder may be combined with the indicator so as to provide a permanent record of 'the readings of the Water stages, but as the recorder constitutes no part of the present lnvention, 1t is. not deemed necessary to enter into a description or illustration thereof.

Importance is attached to the fact that by providing the peculiar means disclosed for y rings and connected to positive and negativepolesv of a source of electrlcal energy, andl three equally` spaced brushes coperating with and contacting the segments between said rings,whereby one segment i's engaged by one of the last mentioned brushes while the other is engaged by the other two of the last mentioned brushes.

2. Ina device of the character described, a frame having a base and an arch, a shaft mounted for rotation within the arch, a commutator-carried by` theshaft and having a pair of rings provided ,with a pair of4 opposite segments projecting toward the op-` posite rings, each segment extend ing through almost one-'halfof a circle, three brushes carried by the arch, two of them contacting continuously with the" two rings and the third being, engageable with thefsegments between the rings, and a lpair of leaf spring brushes carried by the base and contacting with said segments between the rings, the third brush and lastmentioned brushes being spaced equally apart so that one of them always engages one segment while the other two engage the other segments.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own, I have hereto aflixed my signature in the presence lof two witnesses.

Y `DELBERT W. PROEBSTEL Witnesses:

C. M. FRAINEY, G. EVERT BAKER. 

